An Appreciation of Skill: The Luddites, Industrialization, and Peace

By Sally Raskoff

A “Luddite” is a pejorative term reserved for describing a person who is afraid of technology or is otherwise avoiding the march of progress. It is also a term that has come to signify someone who is rather dull, stupid, and who cannot consider change. 

Coming across the term a few years ago, I wanted to know more about this odd word. The explanations given revolve around General Ned Ludd who protested the introduction of power looms for weaving fabric. As industrialization put hand-loom weavers out of business, Ludd and those who joined him protested by breaking power looms, setting fire to mills and textile factories. Mr. Ludd gained a reputation as someone who tried to stop industrialization, which at the time was wresting craftwork manufacturing from the guilds and increasing factory production of fabric and textiles. Such a feat was, of course, impossible, because factory production vastly improves the rate of manufacturing and increases the profit margin by reducing costs and increasing volume (supply).

When you stop a moment and ponder things from the hand-loom weaver’s point of view, it seems more complicated than just trying to stop power looms from taking the work away from hand weavers. Mr. Ludd (if he really existed; there is some doubt) and his colleagues were losing their life’s work – factories were producing less expensive textiles (and other goods) and textile mill factory workers were not as skilled as hand weavers thus they were paid at lower rates. Factory workers did small portions of the overall set of tasks whereas hand weavers did more of the entire process of turning fiber into cloth. 

Mr. Ludd is similar in many ways to the Howard Beale character in the film Network who yelled out, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!” Both figures stood up to protest apathy and the social trends that were negatively affecting their life and times. They are also not so different from Marx and his attempts to enlighten people about the exploitation of workers in capitalist systems.

My fascination with Mr. Ludd took me further into his story. In industrial production, people do tend the large power looms yet their job is to fix breaks in the fiber (thread) or replace the fiber supplies, as they are exhausted. In early industrialization, children did this job, as their hands were small enough to get into the machinery. In many countries, especially those known for woven rugs, children are still the preferred labor force because their fingers can tie very small knots!

Although hand weaving still does exist, in industrialized countries it tends to have the dual status of a craft and as an art. Weavers are organized into guilds although many guilds have the non-profit organizational status of a club. These present-day guilds serve as an educational center for weavers to learn their craft, yet they do not retain the high occupational status that guilds had until the 19^th century when industrialization changed everything.

Historically, guilds were the forerunners of unions and professional groups as they were organized groups of people who do the same type of work. They were more than worker groups; they were training centers where new workers apprenticed to the older workers, learning and honing their skills as they continued to work.

For hand weavers such as Ned Ludd to be called technology phobic is a misnomer and thus is not an appropriate use of his name. The Luddites were protesting not technology per se but the loss of their profession, livelihood, and self worth. 

Factory production can devalue worker skills because the work is separated into discrete tasks that a machine or a human acting like a machine performs as on an assembly line. This re-organization of work results in higher production rates (more items are made) and, generally, less pay for who do fewer tasks and more simplistic work than their artisan counterparts did. Since industrialization supports the interests of the ruling class, it should not be a surprise that the Luddites and their issue have come to be seen in a pejorative or negative manner. 

In my continuing exploration of Luddites, I took a class in weaving and gained a deep appreciation for the skill it takes to create viable textiles. In the nine years since I took that class, I have continued weaving and joined two guilds. It is clear to me that weavers, both in Ned Ludd’s time and in the present, do not fear technology or technological innovation, they embrace it. 

I’ve just returned from a weeklong conference with weavers that confirmed my belief that technology phobias are not part of that world. Most weavers, myself included, seek or invent technologies that assist us in reaching our goals. We are certainly “gadget” people who love the next new “thing” especially if we can make it ourselves or it replaces some tedious process in which creativity is absent. 

Present day weavers, whether they are weaving fabric on looms or baskets, are keeping alive the skills that Ned Ludd treasured. We assume that few people now make their living with hand weaving and while this may be accurate for industrialized countries, this is not the case across the globe. The meaning of weaving to a society may also differ depending on where and when one looks.

At the weaving conference I attended, Willa Shalit gave a lecture on how basket weaving in Rwanda has not only given women economic security but has helped its post-genocide government move the country towards peace. Two Rwandan weavers accompanied Shalit to speak to the issues and answer questions. Janet Nkubana, one of these two weavers, was teaching workshops all week at the conference. 

During the talk, Shalit mentioned that Rwandan President Kagame supports the new (2002) official coat of arms with its “peace basket” in the center, because his mother wove baskets and these woven baskets are key to the country’s economic viability.

In the U.S., there are still some people whose businesses are based on hand weaving. While they are not producing the vast quantities of fabric that a textile mill can, they are producing unique fabrics and hand crafted art that can’t be duplicated in a factory. They are also providing a link back to Ned Ludd that can remind us to question both the consequences of social trends and our use of language, especially when terms are used in a negative manner.

Comments

[Nicole]

Industrialization was important for society, but it has also cause a lot of problems for society. I can see why the Luddites were so upset. Industrialization has for the most part taken over lives. If we have machines down, people cannot work. Few people still farm. Over half of Americans work on machines.

Industrialization helped to develop social classes. People began to work in shops with machines and they moved into cities. Some people chose to stay ad farm. This gave some people the advantage of having a higher income level than others. These people were considered higher up than people such as farmers.

People had reason to doubt that Industrialization was good for America.

[Perry]

The luddites have a point on certain issues, look a subject such as crop growing techniques, cloning fruits vegetables, people, the invention of being global, adversely commits a person to outside harm unforseen.Innovation is great but thelater damage should be studied as well.